Epistemic Authority: A Theory of Trust, Authority, and Autonomy in Belief

By Linda T. Zagzebski

Book Overview

In this book Linda Trinkaus Zagzebski gives an extended argument that the self-reflective person is committed to belief on authority. Epistemic authority is compatible with autonomy, but epistemic self-reliance is incoherent. She argues that epistemic and emotional self-trust are rational and inescapable, that consistent self-trust commits us to trust in others, and that among those we are committed to trusting are some whom we ought to treat as epistemic authorities, modeled on the well-known principles of authority of Joseph Raz. Some of these authorities can be in the moral and religious domains.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0190278269
• ISBN13: 9780190278267
• Release Date: November 2015
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 296 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.1" x 9.2"